Frequency of candle spell casting?

The Cauldron's server is expensive and requires monthly payments. Please become a Bronze, Silver or Gold Donor if you can. Donations are needed every month. Without member support, we can't afford the server.

Or donate directly via Paypal

This message board is The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum's SMF Archive Board. It is closed to new memberships and to posting, but there are over 250,000 messages here that you can still search and read -- many full of interesting and useful information. (This board was open from February 2007 through June 2011).

Our new vBulletin discussion board is located at http://www.ecauldron.com/forum/ -- if you would like to participate in discussions like those you see here, please visit our new vBulletin message board, register an account and join in our discussions. We hope you will find the information in this message archive useful and will consider joining us on our new board.

[nectarguru]

Hi everyone,

I'm interested in casting multiple candle spells with the same intent for a number of days with tea lights. Is this ok? Will it simply build on my first spell, do nothing, or negate the intent? There is a major issue in my life which I need to address. I cast one last night with more of a spoken meditation rather than a written incantation, but I blessed my tea light with jasmine and etched symbols in it. So.....would it be safe to repeat the spell? Also, I read something about the moon phases still being active several days in advance after the phase. Right now the moon is newly waxing, so should I still treat the spell as such? Thanks for your help.

[Fagan_the_Pagan]

Hi everyone,

I'm interested in casting multiple candle spells with the same intent for a number of days with tea lights. Is this ok? Will it simply build on my first spell, do nothing, or negate the intent? There is a major issue in my life which I need to address. I cast one last night with more of a spoken meditation rather than a written incantation, but I blessed my tea light with jasmine and etched symbols in it. So.....would it be safe to repeat the spell? Also, I read something about the moon phases still being active several days in advance after the phase. Right now the moon is newly waxing, so should I still treat the spell as such? Thanks for your help.

Unless you're doing something different this time around I doubt it will do much.  I would suggest you put your energy into following up on that intention with what non-magical activities you can do to help bring about your intent.

[RandallS]

I'm interested in casting multiple candle spells with the same intent for a number of days with tea lights. Is this ok?

Many candle magic spells are designed to be repeated to reinforce the magic -- usually for three, five, seven, or nine days. You can probably modify most candle magic spells to work this way simply by intending to repeat them for a set number of days when you start. If moon timing is important to you, most of the candle spells I've seen that are designed to repeat have the first casting at the appropriate moon phrase and just go from there.

[nectarguru]

Many candle magic spells are designed to be repeated to reinforce the magic -- usually for three, five, seven, or nine days. You can probably modify most candle magic spells to work this way simply by intending to repeat them for a set number of days when you start. If moon timing is important to you, most of the candle spells I've seen that are designed to repeat have the first casting at the appropriate moon phrase and just go from there.

Thanks for the suggestion. I did one the other day and one last night, basically the same routine. I have a lot of very emotional energy still inside of me, so I think I will continue with the nightly spell and meditations for another 5 days or so or as my energy dissipates (hopefully).

[RandallS]

I have a lot of very emotional energy still inside of me, so I think I will continue with the nightly spell and meditations for another 5 days or so or as my energy dissipates (hopefully).

I think you really need to pick a number of days and stay with it. Spells really need a sharp termination to send them off to work. Being fuzzy about this does not help spell success in my experience.

[Perzephone]

Hi everyone,

I'm interested in casting multiple candle spells with the same intent for a number of days with tea lights. Is this ok? Will it simply build on my first spell, do nothing, or negate the intent? There is a major issue in my life which I need to address. I cast one last night with more of a spoken meditation rather than a written incantation, but I blessed my tea light with jasmine and etched symbols in it. So.....would it be safe to repeat the spell?

Like Randall said, many spells are designed to be repeated. For some reason, when I read your post I was under the impression that you were talking about doing different spells all at the same time (magical multi-tasking?), not just repeating the same spell. Some spells work best when repeated, others are 'fix it & forget it' spells - but you have to determine which way works best for you. Never be afraid to experiment a little - the worst that can happen is that the spell won't work.

Also, I read something about the moon phases still being active several days in advance after the phase. Right now the moon is newly waxing, so should I still treat the spell as such? Thanks for your help.

It's usually believed that the new and full moons last for 3 days - the day before the peak of the phase-change, the peak of the change, and the day after. Some people feel the best times to perform magic are the before & after days, and not on the actual peak of the changes, because those times are 'static', with no energy or motion to them.

A really nice little application you can use on your computer is called 'lunabar'. It tells you the phase the moon is in, tells you when the moon is 'void of course' (passing from one astrological sign to another, without really being in either), all kinds of almanac-style goodies. It's small, free and fairly trustworthy.
Here's the link: http://infra-azure.org/main/?page_id=2

[RandallS]

A really nice little application you can use on your computer is called 'lunabar'. It tells you the phase the moon is in, tells you when the moon is 'void of course' (passing from one astrological sign to another, without really being in either), all kinds of almanac-style goodies. It's small, free and fairly trustworthy.
Here's the link: http://infra-azure.org/main/?page_id=2

I'll trot out my "Moon void of course" comment for those who have not heard it. While Silver Ravenwolf makes a huge issue about not doing magic when the moon is void of course, this is NOT the universal rule she makes it sound like, as far as I can tell it is something from her own magical path that she has universalized. The whole moon void of course thing comes from horary astrology where the moon being void of course was one of the signs that one could not do a successful reading. It has been generalized in recent times to "don't start things when the moon is void of course."  What is weird is that the other signs that one should not proceed with a horary astrology reading have not been similarly treated. No one worries about casting a spell when the moon is in Via Combusta or if one's ascendent is less than 3 degrees or more than 27 degrees, etc.

[Perzephone]

I'll trot out my "Moon void of course" comment for those who have not heard it. While Silver Ravenwolf makes a huge issue about not doing magic when the moon is void of course, this is NOT the universal rule she makes it sound like, as far as I can tell it is something from her own magical path that she has universalized. The whole moon void of course thing comes from horary astrology where the moon being void of course was one of the signs that one could not do a successful reading. It has been generalized in recent times to "don't start things when the moon is void of course."  What is weird is that the other signs that one should not proceed with a horary astrology reading have not been similarly treated. No one worries about casting a spell when the moon is in Via Combusta or if one's ascendent is less than 3 degrees or more than 27 degrees, etc.

The whole v.o.c. thing for me was because of ceremonialism - and Linda Goodman, who is possibly even wackier than SRW. It was just a 'bad moon', not necessarily all that important, but if you were going to call up something that might be bigger than you could handle, doing it in a good time of the month was better than doing it during a bad aspect. I haven't even thought about v.o.c. in years - until I opened my lunabar the other night & the moon was 'void of course'. In my mind I read it more like, 'Void, of course' & it took me a minute or two to fuddle it out 

[nectarguru]

Like Randall said, many spells are designed to be repeated. For some reason, when I read your post I was under the impression that you were talking about doing different spells all at the same time (magical multi-tasking?), not just repeating the same spell. Some spells work best when repeated, others are 'fix it & forget it' spells - but you have to determine which way works best for you. Never be afraid to experiment a little - the worst that can happen is that the spell won't work.

It's usually believed that the new and full moons last for 3 days - the day before the peak of the phase-change, the peak of the change, and the day after. Some people feel the best times to perform magic are the before & after days, and not on the actual peak of the changes, because those times are 'static', with no energy or motion to them.

A really nice little application you can use on your computer is called 'lunabar'. It tells you the phase the moon is in, tells you when the moon is 'void of course' (passing from one astrological sign to another, without really being in either), all kinds of almanac-style goodies. It's small, free and fairly trustworthy.
Here's the link: http://infra-azure.org/main/?page_id=2

Hmm....thanks for the advice everyone. I have decided to finish my spell after 7 days, today being the third. I am not doing different spells or multitasking, I'm simply repeating the same candle spell. I am doing verbal and mental meditations full of intent rather than written and burned incantations. I've decided to go with the meditations because I feel for this ritual the written incantations would be less from the heart. Also, I'm using the spell as a way to heighten my situation which I am currently in, instead of casting and waiting for the spell to take course.

[dragonfly_high]

The whole v.o.c. thing for me was because of ceremonialism - and Linda Goodman, who is possibly even wackier than SRW. It was just a 'bad moon', not necessarily all that important, but if you were going to call up something that might be bigger than you could handle, doing it in a good time of the month was better than doing it during a bad aspect. I haven't even thought about v.o.c. in years - until I opened my lunabar the other night & the moon was 'void of course'. In my mind I read it more like, 'Void, of course' & it took me a minute or two to fuddle it out 

Are you talking about the dark/new moon?  The phase were you can't see it at all?

[SunflowerP]

In my mind I read it more like, 'Void, of course' & it took me a minute or two to fuddle it out 

Heh... that's my running gag on the concept.  I picture a wide-eyed neophyte saying, "Gee, why didn't that moon spell work? <check ephemeris> Oh, that's it!  The moon was void, of course!"

You can tell I don't put much stock in the idea - I suppose it could be relevant, in context of a style of practice that makes use of astrological correspondences and events as a complete system, but astrology always left me cold; observational astronomy (i.e., looking at the moon to know its phases, rather than checking an ephemeris) serves my Craft just fine.   Probably my disinterest in astrology is also Linda Goodman's fault; she was massively influential on populist mystical astrology of the '70s, which is when I was first sorting through Weird Stuff to see which bits resonated for me.

Sunflower

[RandallS]

Are you talking about the dark/new moon?  The phase were you can't see it at all?

The technical definition (from horary astrology) of "void of course" from Anthony Louis' Horary Astrology: "The Moon or any planet is "void of course" when it makes no major Ptolemaic aspects before leaving its sign. Firmicus Maternus refers to the void of course planet as traveling in an aspect vacuum. The five major aspects used to make this judgement are Ptolemy's conjunction, sextile, square, opposition and trine."  In simpler terms, the moon (or any astrological planet) is void of course when it is moving between signs of the zodiac.  For the moon, this is a few minutes 13 times a month.

[dragonfly_high]

The technical definition (from horary astrology) of "void of course" from Anthony Louis' Horary Astrology: "The Moon or any planet is "void of course" when it makes no major Ptolemaic aspects before leaving its sign. Firmicus Maternus refers to the void of course planet as traveling in an aspect vacuum. The five major aspects used to make this judgement are Ptolemy's conjunction, sextile, square, opposition and trine."  In simpler terms, the moon (or any astrological planet) is void of course when it is moving between signs of the zodiac.  For the moon, this is a few minutes 13 times a month.

OH! Okay.  Pfttt! I would not worry about that at all.  Then again, I have no interest in working with the planets or astrology, so that may have a big part of it.

[nectarguru]

Thanks again everybody. A related question, if I may. How long do you people normally wait before you decide that perhaps the spell didn't work, and you might decide to repeat it? I know that you must let a spell run it's course, but how do you decide that it HASN'T? I've done candle work in the past, but never attempted to really repeat a spell, at least within a limited amount of time....

[Perzephone]

Thanks again everybody. A related question, if I may. How long do you people normally wait before you decide that perhaps the spell didn't work, and you might decide to repeat it? I know that you must let a spell run it's course, but how do you decide that it HASN'T? I've done candle work in the past, but never attempted to really repeat a spell, at least within a limited amount of time....

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, things just don't work out. I've done a lot of job spells over the years, and if I get to the interview stage, or the second interview stage, and I don't get the job - the spell obviously didn't work. But, maybe I screwed up during the interview or maybe it wasn't the 'right' job for me. You just have to get a feel for things through practice.

A lot of people say magic should be a last resort, and I used to be one of those people, but if you only use magic (which is a tool, like any other) as a last resort, you don't get much practice in, and without practice, you'll never really gain any kind of mastery of it. Magic should be a tool to help things along, kind of like a lever or a can opener. 

[Tags:]

Jump to: Please select a destination: ----------------------------- About The Cauldron ----------------------------- => Rules and Regulations => Cauldron Announcements ===> Volunteers Needed: Site Assistants and Projects => Introductions => Board Questions, Suggestions, and Feedback => Chat and CauldronMUX Support => Test Board ----------------------------- Religion and Philosophy ----------------------------- => Paganism For Beginners => Books and Other Resources => Pagan Religions => Pagan Spirituality => Gods, Goddesses, and Mythology => Worship and Ritual => Holidays and Festivals => History and Religion => Faith in Everyday Life => Philosophy and Metaphysics => Non-Pagan Religions and Interfaith Discussions => Miscellaneous Religious Discussions ----------------------------- Magic and the Occult ----------------------------- => Magic and the Occult for Beginners => Witchcraft, Hoodoo, and Folk Magic => The Western Magical Tradition => Chaos Magic => Lodges and Other Magic Organizations => Miscellaneous Magical Discussions ----------------------------- Special Interest Groups & Special Discussions ----------------------------- => Special Topic Discussions => Chavi Memorial Chronic Illness SIG => General SIGS ===> College Pagans SIG ===> Cooking SIG ===> Divination SIG ===> Home and Garden SIG ===> Pagan Parents SIG ===> Teen Pagans SIG => Religious SIGS ===> Asatru and Heathenry SIG ===> Cauldron Cill ===> FlameKeeping SIG ===> Hazel and Oak: A Celtic Polytheism SIG ===> Neo-Druidry SIG ===> Reformed Kemeticism SIG ===> Ta Hiera Hellenic Polytheism SIG => Book/Media Discussion Boards ===> Academic Book Discussions ===> Pagan Religion Book Discussions ===> Magick Book Discussions ===> Fiction Book Discussions ===> DVD/Video Discussions ----------------------------- Life, the Universe, and Everything Else ----------------------------- => Pagan Announcements => Prayer and Energy Requests => News and Politics ===> Religious News ===> Non-Religious News ===> Political Discussions => Social Discussion Boards ===> Art, Poetry and Writing ===> Books ===> Computers and the Internet ===> Crafts and Hobbies ===> Family Life ===> Gaming ===> Health and Medicine ===> Humor and Quizzes ===> Music, Television, and Film ===> Pets ===> Science and Technology ===> Sports and Recreation